Meet new recruit Reagan Campbell-Gillard
It’s day two in PARRAdise for Reagan Campbell-Gillard and the forward is already itching for Round One of the 2020 season to roll around.
“So far so good, the boys and the staff have been pretty welcoming and I’m just ready to rock and roll,” he said.
The 26-year-old came across from the Penrith Panthers, where he played up through the junior ranks and into first grade.
He has joined the Parramatta Eels on a deal until the end of 2024.
Campbell-Gillard is a welcome addition to the Blue and Gold’s roster, boasting 114 NRL games to his name and representative honours with the New South Wales Blues and Australia, to name a few.
Standing at 193 centimetres tall and weighing 115 kilos, he has the power needed to bolster a forward pack.
But he’s the first to admit 2019 wasn’t his year.
“I didn’t enjoy football. That was just me personally. Everything I was trying to do wasn’t working,” he said.
“Change is good so … I’ll be putting my best foot forward for this team and I want to play representative football again.
“I believe this team can go a long way and I want to be a part of that,” he said.
While he’s excited to pull on Eels colours, Campbell-Gillard admits it still feels a bit strange being at a club other than Penrith.
“Everyone who comes through this system and obviously Penrith’s system, you learn to dislike that other team, so it’s definitely a lot different, but exciting,” he said.
“I’m very excited to put on this jersey and try to add something to the team and improve my football as well.
While he’s back at pre-season training, Campbell-Gillard is on lighter duties to start off with.
“I’ve been in rehab with the elbow clean-out in the off season so hopefully I start running by the end of the week and building that strength back up to have a good pre season,” he said.
“It’s crucial for building a good foundation for the season and you know so far so good. The boys are really knuckling down and doing really good.
“So yeah, very excited, really driven to be here and yeah really excited for the first round,” he said.
